How To Choose An Online College Program - Insider Tips

It's Hard to Choose!

A Poor Choice Can Be Costly
The growth of eLearning has exploded.  More students than ever before earn entire degrees online.  But have they made the right choice?   Most people really don't know how to assess eLearning programs.  It is easy to choose the wrong program.

As someone who manages and teaches in an online graduate program I probably have some insight that most people don't. Before you spend a lot of time and money at the wrong school, you should consider these issues.

Your Career Goals

What are your career goals?  Does the program help you to meet them?  Will it help you get a job or a promotion? Identify the type of job you want to have five years from now.  Through your network (or through LinkedIn) find people that are doing this job.  How did they get there? Does anybody have a degree from the school you are investigating?  Ask employers if they hire candidates from that school.

Accreditation 

Is the college or university accredited?  Hopefully, it is accreditation by one the major six regional accreditation associations.  Sorry, but these are the only ones that really count in my opinion.  I had to deny admission to a young lady who graduated from a school that was accredited by the Association for Biblical Higher Education.  She tearfully told me "they said they were accredited". Unfortunately for her they were accredited, but it wasn't the type of accreditation that really counts. Additionally, accreditation is awarded to the university overall and not to an individual program in most cases.   

Reputation

The reputation of the institution and the program is very important and can cut across many areas.  For example, what do alumni say about the program? Do employers hire their graduates?  What do people say about the faculty? Today with LinkedIn it is fairly easy to find people who maybe graduates of a particular college.  Additionally, if an organization is hiring you can ask them if they have a history of hiring graduates from particular schools. 

Program Design and Format
The format and design of the program can differ greatly in online programs.  As a learner you will be spending a lot of time and money, so you want to make sure the program is a "fit" for you. Does it have synchronous, asynchronous or blended course delivery?  What are the course deliverables for students?  Do yjur ise pares and academic case studies, or more applied projects.  I think project work has many advantages over tests and papers. Do they require a comprehensive exam or portfolio of work samples?  In my opinion professional portfolios are the way to go. They can demonstrate your skills and competencies to potential employers.

Student and Career Services

If you are an adult student you probably are very interested in getting a job.  Does the college have career services oriented toward working adult students?  Do they have connections with employers and professional associations? Who hires their graduates? Can you actually talk to student service reps on the phone, or do they push you to search online for everything?  Do they have so many students that they cannot prove adequate service?

Academic Policies

Can you start the program and/or graduate in any semester? Or do they only accept new students in the Fall semester?  Do they allow you to take any electives, or is it a lock-step program with little choice?  What is their policy concerning transfer of credits?

I've posed a lot of questions. You can find answers to most of them by talking to current students, alumni and employers. Additionally, you can find a number of answers on the college website and using LinkedIn. Of course don't forget the obvious.  You can simply call and ask them. In the end, it is worth the time and effort to research potential schools and programs. Make the right choice. Your career may depend on it.

You Don’t Need a Degree in Instructional Design to Get a Job

This blog article might get me fired!

In my position as the director of a graduate program in instructional design (OK there’s my full disclosure), I often get the question “Will this degree get me a job?” My answer is no. That response may be heresy for a college professor.

In reality, I am not sure that ANY degree guarantees you a job these days. If people truly think that a degree alone will get them a job, then they are wasting their time and their money.

Employers look at a number of things besides your education. That may include your work experience, your skills and competencies (as documented by a professional portfolio), how well you work in groups, how you solve problems, your creativity and much more. You should never overlook the importance of career tools and such as your resume, your references, your relationships within the professional community, how well they interview, etc. They too play a part in getting a job.

My academic colleagues may not like this, but everyone doesn’t need a college degree. If someone really wanted to they could get comparable knowledge on their own. They could do this by reading and studying and practicing on their own, taking appropriate professional development courses, getting feedback and coaching from professional colleagues, working with a mentor, etc. This might give them similar benefits that may compare to the content of a college degree. Are there exceptions to this? Of course there are! The truth is that most people don't have the self-discipline to do this.

The older you get, your degree becomes less critical in getting a job. As you gain experience, employers look more at your accomplishments and your body of professional work, far more than your degrees. There are some employers who use the degree as a screening tool to eliminate candidates from a large pile of applicants. However, in some workplace environments degrees are very important (higher education), while in others they are not (e.g. sales).

It is very possible that you may not need a degree at all. There are a number of people in our field (instructional design & eLearning) who are very accomplished and don’t have a degree. The difference is they have accomplishments and a body of work that showcases their skills.

As with many questions in life, the answer to this question often is “it depends”. Before you spend a lot of time and money on a degree, think about what you will put into it (time and money) compared to what you will get out of it (raise, new job, skills). In the end, you are in charge of your own career, so weigh the pros and cons carefully.

Speaking of careers, I wonder if I still have a job?